What is "Leave A Legacy"?

May is Leave A Legacy month. But what does that mean?*

Almost everyone has a favourite charity. The reasons why a charity is close to your heart are as varied as the charities themselves. LEAVE A LEGACY™ is a public awareness campaign that promotes the benefits of leaving a bequest in your Will to help your favourite charitable organization.

The LEAVE A LEGACY™ program provides information on how you can support charities through estate planning. This program is a partnership between registered charities, professional advisors, the media and the public. (An “estate” is simply a term used to describe any property, money or personal belongings that you have at the time of your death.)

The aim of LEAVE A LEGACY™ is two-fold:

1. Ensure every adult in Canada has an up-to-date Will; and
2. Encourage individuals to leave a gift for their favourite registered charity in their Will.

Nova Scotians are caring people. Many volunteer on a regular basis and give financially to the charities of their choice, and when they are gone, their support is sorely missed. But ironically, as many as 70 per cent of Canadians have not made a Will, and studies show that only seven per cent of those who make Wills leave money to charity.

The vision of LEAVE A LEGACY™ is to ensure every Nova Scotian is aware of the personal and financial benefits of leaving a gift for their charities of choice in their Will. Preparing an estate plan that includes a charitable gift provides tremendous personal satisfaction and significant tax benefits for donors. While realizing tax benefits, LEAVE A LEGACY™ donors have an enormous impact on our communities. They help to preserve the things they care about for future generations.

Everyone benefits from LEAVE A LEGACY™ – the individual, the family and the community. Whatever your reasons, your gift makes a difference!

 
* Information excerpted from Leave A Legacy Nova Scotia.